Music
27 Jul 21

YouTube Music releases Foundry Class of 2021

This year's class is the biggest to date, with 27 artists from 14 countries across a spectrum of genres.

Bella Shmurda, Blessd, Raveena, and Sinéad Harnett are among the 27 independent music artists that were selected to be a part of YouTube Music's Foundry Class of 2021.

This global artist development program provides musicians a partnership with YouTube and seed funding to further develop their content.

Started in 2015 as a workshop series, Foundry has provided support for more than 150 groundbreaking artists across 15 countries, including Dua Lipa, Arlo Parks, Jacob Collier, Chloe x Halle, and Cavetown.

In 2019, Ireland's own hip-hop artist Kojaque was inducted into the program. “My mentality towards music has all been DIY; independence when it comes to creativity is key for me. My YouTube channel has given me the opportunity to showcase that output to the world without interference,” stated Kojaque.

Naomi Zeichner, Artist Promotional Partnerships Lead for YouTube Music stated, "Great content is at the foundation of any artist’s success. Foundry artists make videos that bring context to their music and teach people new things about the world."

Check out the full list of Foundry Artists in the video below.